Google Play announces policy changes on location access, subscriptions, and deceptive apps

The app landscape is constantly changing and Google tries to keep the Play Store evolving to match it. The company is announcing a number of policy changes for Google Play that cover things such as location access, subscriptions, and deceptive apps. The changes will be rolling out over the next few months.

Location access is one of the biggest privacy concerns for users. Google has taken steps to make it easier to control which apps have access to location data. Building on the new options in Android 10, Android 11 gives users the option to grant an app “one-time” location access.

In February, Google announced they would require developers to get approval to access background location in their app. This policy is now live, however, Google is extending the timeline to make changes. No action will be taken on new apps until August 2020 and no action will be taken on existing apps until November 2020.

Nest up is more transparent subscriptions. It can sometimes be a little confusing to figure out what exactly you are signing up for. The goal of this new Google Play policy is to make sure users understand subscription terms, free trials, and introductory offers. Developers are urged to be explicit about subscription details.

Users should know if a subscription is required to use all or parts of the app, and if a subscription isn’t required, it should be easy to dismiss the offers. Price and billing cycle should be clearly stated as well. Free trials and introductory offers need to tell users the duration, pricing, what’s included, when the trial will end, and how to cancel. Developers have until June 16, 2020 to comply with this policy.

Furthermore, Google has made some platform-level product changes to increase user trust without additional work from developers. The Google Play checkout cart has been updated to increase transparency. Users are emailed before a free trial or intro price ends and also when 3, 6, or 12-month plan renewals are coming up. Subscribers will be notified that uninstalling an app does not cancel the subscription.

All of these Google Play policy changes should make it easier for users to decide which apps get location access and understand what they’re signing up for. Deceptive apps come in many shapes and sizes, so it’s great to have these policies to weed them out.

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Automate Identity Management for your Team with Teamstack

Teamstack offers a complete solution for anyone looking to have more control over their workforce, and the apps they use on a daily basis. With secure and convenient access, you’ll be able to simplify your employee’s access to your work-related apps. Teamstack is a cloud identity management platform that makes growing your team easy.  It is compatible with over 500 apps and trusted by more than 750 teams worldwide.

“Connecting people with technology, securely. Take advantage of pre-built integrations, Single Sign-On and one-click user provisioning and allow your team to conveniently sign in to any application passwordless with multi-factor authentication.”

Teamstack

You’ll be able to quickly grant access to your workplace apps for new employees. You can also easily manage each employee’s access to your work apps, and have better security through strong password management tools. Multi-Factor Authentication supports many different login and verification methods including WebAuthn, TOTP, SMS codes and more.

Login to Teamstack using the Chrome extension

Manage team passwords and custom expiration dates

One-Click Provisioning takes the pain out of onboarding (and offboarding) users with Teamstack’s one-click provisioning. A single click can add or remove users from all of your applications. This reduces risk and increases efficiency. You can also put into place geo-restrictions, which prevent anyone from accessing your Teamstack from outside of a dedicated area.

Addons are an important part of Teamstack and allow you to structure your system exactly how you want it. Add additional features to your setup, like Extended Audit Trail which keeps detailed logs of user logins and app usage. Another useful addon is Custom MFA which lets you add an additional layer of security over specific apps.

Teamstack is the best solution for connecting your workforce through technology. Download it today and use the code below to get six months free.

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We thank Teamstack for sponsoring this post. Our sponsors help us pay for the many costs associated with running XDA, including server costs, full time developers, news writers, and much more. While you might see sponsored content (which will always be labeled as such) alongside Portal content, the Portal team is in no way responsible for these posts. Sponsored content, advertising and XDA Depot are managed by a separate team entirely. XDA will never compromise its journalistic integrity by accepting money to write favorably about a company, or alter our opinions or views in any way. Our opinion cannot be bought.

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Tasker 5.9.3.beta.4 adds “Contact Via App” to automate WhatsApp calls, WireGuard integration, and more

As far as automation apps on Android are concerned, Tasker is widely regarded as one of the best options out there. The app allows you to create Profiles that automatically trigger based on certain conditions to execute Tasks and it offers a vast variety of plugins that can help you automate pretty much anything on your Android device. For instance, a recent beta release of the app introduced full Do Not Disturb customization and Sensor actions, that let you completely personalize your phone’s Do Not Disturb mode and launch tasks that are triggered by values collected from your phone’s sensors. Now, the app is getting another significant update in the beta channel which brings even more to the table.

XDA Tasker Tips & Tricks Forum

As per a recent post on Reddit, Tasker v5.9.3.beta.4 is now rolling out to users and it includes a plethora of interesting new features. Here are some of the most noteworthy features in the latest Tasker beta release:

Contact Via App

If you’ve ever wanted to automate an action to start a WhatsApp chat, video call, or navigate to a contact’s address in Google Maps, you can now use the new “Contact Via App” action to do just that. The action lets you pick any contact on your device and then, depending on the apps you have installed, choose an action to perform. As you can see in the video demo, you can use this new action to launch Google Maps navigation to a particular contact’s address, initiate a Skype call with that contact, view their profile information in WhatsApp, or start an audio/video call with them on WhatsApp. While you could technically do all of this already by sending an intent, the new feature now takes some of the legwork away and makes the whole process easier.

WireGuard Integration

For the unaware, WireGuard is a brand new, modern VPN protocol that just made its way into the Linux kernel. In case you’re running a custom kernel with WireGuard support on your device, you can use the WireGuard Android app to control WireGuard VPN tunnels. However, turning the WireGuard VPN tunnel on/off is a manual process that could get cumbersome if you do it frequently. In case you wish to automatically enable/disable the VPN tunnel based on your current location, you can now do so with Tasker. Check out the demo video below to see how you can configure it on your device.

Along with these two features, the latest Tasker beta update includes several other changes that you can see in the changelog section below. If you’re interested in trying out these features for yourself, you can enroll in the Tasker beta by following this link and then download the latest release from the Play Store link below.

Full Changelog

• Added new Contact Via App action that allows you to communicate with your contacts via third party apps (eg Video call via Whatsapp, audio call via skype, etc)
• Added action to Control WireGuard tunnels in the Tasker Function action
• Allow Tasker Secondary app to be triggered by URLs like tasker://secondary?text=hello&other=hi where every parameter will be made available as a Tasker variable in the triggered task
• Added Query option to Do Not Disturb action
• Add option in Test Net to get your phone’s Wifi IP Address
• Fixed File Modified event in a variety of situations
• Added Event filter to File Modified event so that you can react to just a single event instead of all of them
• Changed %evtprm(1) for File Modified event from the path that is being monitored to the path of the actual file that changed
• Allow File Modified event to work with variables in the File Modified field
• Added %evtprm() to the variable list in actions that are in a profile that has an event condition
• Added Wait For File Event function to Tasker Function action so that you can wait for example for a file to finish writing
• Made moving projects left and right easier by asking how many positions you want to move the project instead of having to move 1 by 1
• Fixed issues with clipboard getting while in the background
• Fixed taking screenshots on Android 10, shouldn’t show the prompt on the screenshot anymore
• Fixed HTTP Request action when a gzipped response was gotten. Now automatically unzips it
• Fixed automatic redirections in HTTP Request action in some cases
• Added line separators in List Dialog action
• Made Get Sims action in Tasker Function action request the READ_PHONE_STATE permission
• Added Biometric permission to kid apps if needed
• Added tip about List Dialog action when using the Menu action
• Tried to make Tasker only check for root access if root actions are used

Tasker ($3.49, Google Play) →

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Source: Reddit

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Samsung became the third largest smartphone SoC vendor globally in 2019

Qualcomm has been the dominant player in the smartphone SoC vendor market for much of the last decade. MediaTek has long performed the role of providing cheaper SoCs in the smartphone market. Samsung and Huawei’s HiSilicon, on the other hand, make custom SoCs that are intended for use in their own smartphones. Samsung System LSI’s Exynos SoCs were used only by Samsung Mobile’s phones, for example, while HiSilicon’s Kirin chips are used in Huawei and Honor phones. In 2019, this equation changed as Samsung System LSI started selling Exynos chips to other vendors such as Motorola and Vivo. This has helped the company achieve the position of being the largest smartphone application processor (AP) vendor globally in 2019, according to a report by Counterpoint Research.

Counterpoint Research has released its latest quarterly handset report. According to the report, Samsung Electronics and HiSilicon were the only vendors among the top smartphone SoC vendors to see positive share growth in 2019, while Qualcomm, MediaTek, and Apple all saw declines.

Source: Counterpoint Research

Qualcomm remained the top vendor of application processors, despite suffering a 1.6% decline through the year. It still accounts for one-third of smartphone AP shipments in 2019. Its shares exceeded 30% in all markets except Middle East & Africa (MEA), where lower demand for high-end phones tempered demand for Qualcomm chips in comparison to other markets. This is because Qualcomm’s chips are traditionally more expensive than MediaTek’s chips, for instance.

MediaTek also saw a slight decline in its market share in 2019, while maintaining its second-place position. It had strong performance in markets like MEA, India, and Southeast Asia, with the demand being driven by low-to-mid-end phones. The company achieved one-quarter market share of global smartphone AP sales.

Huawei (HiSilicon), on the other hand, saw its market share decline in many markets outside China due to the US trade ban. Ironically, the company was able to offset these issues by “significantly expanding presence and share” in its domestic market of China.

Source: Counterpoint Research

Samsung performed particularly well in Europe, India, and Latin America, and its market share increased in other regions such as North America as well. Counterpoint Research notes that competition between these AP vendors intensified in 2019, as the focus was getting the balance right between processing speeds and price. Samsung’s share increased by 2.2% year-over-year in a declining market. However, the company outsourced some of its A-series smartphone manufacturing to Chinese ODMs since the last year, and Counterpoint says this will drive some share gains for Qualcomm and MediaTek. Also, the rising proliferation of 5G phones in the US and China will increase Samsung’s dependence on Qualcomm chips in its flagship and high-tier phones in these regions. (Currently, the company relies on Snapdragon chips for the North American/Chinese/Japanese/South Korean/Latin American variants of the Galaxy S20 series, which are sold only in a 5G configuration. The Exynos 990 global variants are further bifurcated into 5G and 4G variants.)

Counterpoint further noted that Samsung is horizontally scaling with an aim to sell its 5G SoCs to Chinese brands this year, in order to help drive Exynos chip volumes in 2020. (The Vivo X30 and X30 Pro feature the company’s upper-tier Exynos 980 SoC, for example.) Samsung is also increasingly adopting its Exynos chips across its own portfolio designed and manufactured in-house for global regions except for the US/Japan/China. Therefore, the company estimates Samsung’s overall share of the smartphone application processor market to grow further in 2020.

5G will be an important part of the story as well. 5G integrated chips with support for sub-6GHz networks will start to factor in as a competitive advantage, according to Counterpoint. Examples of such chips include the Qualcomm Snapdragon 765, MediaTek Dimensity 1000/L, and the MediaTek Dimensity 800. These chips reduce power consumption by reducing the need for an external 5G modem, and they also take up less space within the phone. Counterpoint estimates the cheapest 5G phone to be powered by an integrated 5G chip to go to sub-$300 prices in the second half of 2020, as vendors from HiSilicon, Qualcomm, MediaTek, Samsung, and even Unisoc are all pushing. In the premium segment, however, discrete 5G modem solutions will continue to be seen in the upcoming 5G iPhones as well as the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 + X55 modem-powered flagship Android phones.

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Source: Counterpoint Research

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Netflix adds the OPPO Reno3, some Sony Xperia phones, and the unannounced Xiaomi Mi Note 10 Lite to its HD/HDR supported list

The regular Android community started to care about Google’s Widevine DRM when they discovered the connection between the DRM level and HD playback capability in streaming apps like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. Having Widevine L1 status is indeed a mandatory requirement, but it doesn’t necessarily ensure the ability to play Netflix content in HD, as the streaming provider has to manually whitelist the devices for the facility. A similar certification procedure for Netflix HDR10 playback also exists, with the obvious prerequisite of having an HDR display.

Netflix maintains a publicly accessible list of HD and HDR playback supported devices so that consumers can pick the right one for binge-watching. The certifications aren’t correlated with each other, though. Netflix tends to update its list once a device is certified to playback video in HD and/or HDR10. The company has now added a bunch of Sony Xperia, Xiaomi, and OPPO phones to their index of supported devices.

New HD-compatible devices:

• OPPO Reno3 (CPH2043)
• OPPO Reno3 Pro (CPH2035, CPH2036, CPH2037)
• Sony Xperia 1 II
• Sony Xperia 5
• Sony Xperia XZ1 Compact
• Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact
• Xiaomi Mi 10
• Xiaomi Mi 10 Lite 5G
• Xiaomi Mi 10 Pro
• Xiaomi Mi Note 10 Lite

New HDR10-compatible devices:

• Xiaomi Mi 10 Lite 5G
• Xiaomi Mi Note 10 Lite

Interestingly, one of the newly listed devices is the unreleased Xiaomi Mi Note 10 Lite. This could be a mistake and Netflix intended to list the Mi Note 10 instead, but this wouldn’t be the first time that Netflix has listed an unreleased device by accident. They did this very recently with the Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite and the Google Pixel 4, for example.

It is also worth mentioning that the OPPO Reno3 and Reno3 Pro that have been added to this list are the global models with the MediaTek Helio P90 and P95 SoCs, and not the Chinese variants. On the other hand, the Sony Xperia 1 II, Sony Xperia 5, Xiaomi Mi 10, and Xiaomi Mi 10 Pro were already added to the list of devices that support HDR10 playback on Netflix back in March. Thus, their additions to the list of devices that support Netflix playback in HD is merely a formality.

Netflix (Free⁺, Google Play) →

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Source: Netflix
Via: Android Police

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Huawei announces the Next-Image 2020 photography competition with prizes including a Huawei P40 Pro and up to $10,000

Huawei is among the leading pioneers of smartphone photography and it has proved this time and again with its P Series. Despite the hurdles due to the executive order passed by the U.S. President last year, Huawei has been launching new flagship phones, although in select markets. It launched the Huawei P40, P40 Pro, and the P40 Pro+ last month with a horde of exciting camera features which make it a desirable phone for many photography enthusiasts. Huawei is now hosting a global photography competition and the winners will win a Huawei P40 Pro and cash prizes up to $10,000.

Huawei is inviting “uplifting and inspirational” photographs and videos under its NEXT-IMAGE 2020 contest. There are over 70 prizes to be won in the content and participants can submit their photos or videos under six categories, such as:

• Near Far – bringing different perspective in the same image
• Good Night – focussing on nocturnal or low light ambiance
• Hello, Life! – images focussing on human connections or emotions
• Faces – portrait shots
• Live Moments – short videos or movies with up to 10 minutes in length
• Storyteller – telling a story using a series of 3-9 photographs

There are a few conditions for the contest and the first one is that only images and videos captured on a Huawei or an Honor phone will qualify for the competition. The window for submissions is open till midnight of July 31st (UTC+8 i.e. Beijing Time) and you can head over to the microsite to submit your entries or read up on the terms and conditions further.

Top photographers and Huawei executives will be deciding the winners. There will be three overall winners and each of them will get the $10,000 cash along with a Huawei P40 Pro (8GB/256GB). Among other prizes, there is the Huawei P40 Pro with a $1,000 cash prize for up to 15 top submissions, just the P40 Pro for as many as 50 runner-ups and five additional for honorable mentions.

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OPPO Find X2 series and Reno3 Pro are OPPO’s first Android Enterprise Recommended smartphones

Google launched the Android Enterprise Recommended program back in 2018 to certify devices for enterprise deployment. With the program, Googled wanted to make it easy for businesses to easily determine which Android devices were best for them and the company certified devices based on a couple of different criteria. AER certified devices were required to meet a minimum hardware specification, support bulk deployment with zero-touch enrollment, get Android security updates within 90 days of release from Google for a period of 3 years, be available unlocked from the manufacturer or reseller, and more. As of now, Google has certified more than 150 devices from a variety of different manufacturers and the latest additions come from Chinese OEM OPPO.

OPPO smartphones have previously never met AER requirements, but this year, the company has enrolled 3 of its devices into the program: the OPPO Reno3 Pro (global variant), OPPO Find X2, and OPPO Find X2 Pro. The company has also set up a web page for its AER devices, where it highlights some of the features it will offer to enterprise users. These include regular security updates for 3 years from initial shipping and at least one Android version upgrade, flexible device management, zero-touch enrollment, and more.

Out of the three devices to make the cut, the OPPO Find X2 series offers flagship specifications, including Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 865 SoC, high refresh rate QHD+ displays, 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM, and impressive triple-camera setups. On the other hand, the OPPO Reno3 Pro is a mid-range device powered by MediaTek’s Helio P95 chip, coupled with 8GB of RAM, an FHD+ display, and a respectable quad-camera setup. It’s also worth noting that OPPO isn’t the only new company that is offering Android Enterprise Recommended devices this year. In a recent post on its forums, OPPO’s sister company OnePlus revealed that it also aims to have AER devices available this year. However, as of now, we have no information regarding the release timeline for OnePlus’ AER certified devices.

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Source: Android Enterprise Solutions Directory (1,2,3)

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